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Hey, remember me? I’m that guy who writes stuff round these parts, although there’s not been much of that going on lately.

And it’s not like there haven’t been plenty of things to write about. Quite the opposite in fact, there’s been loads: the end of one school year for one, the start of a new one for another (including Megan’s first day at nursery)and that’s before considering summer holidays in France, Lincolnshire and Buckinghamshire or the Commonwealth Games right here in Glasgow.

All of those things deserve posts, and maybe I’ll actually get round to writing them at some point, but there’s something else that’s taken up a fair chunk of my time recently that absolutely needs mentioning first.

12 days ago, I competed in my first duathlon – that’s a triathlon where the swimming part is replaced by an extra run. As if one run isn’t enough! I managed to complete the two 5km runs, with a 20km cycle in between, in a fairly respectable (I think) time of 1:35:17. And this Sunday I’ll be running my first half marathon in 20 years at the Great Scottish Run. Exciting times!

The end is in sight :)

Either of these events would be a test on their own. Taking on both is even more of a challenge, and one I did think long and hard about – especially 15 days apart. So why am I doing this to myself?

Back in July we learned that a good friend had been diagnosed with breast cancer, which was quite a shock, not least because she’s younger than me. Fortunately, things are looking good for our friend, and it looks like things have been caught early enough. But many other women (and men) aren’t so lucky, and with 1 in 8 women expected to be diagnosed with the disease at some point in their lives, finding new cures and improving survival rates is imperative.

Which is why I’m taking part in these events – to raise money for Breast Cancer Campaign, a UK based charity funding world-class breast cancer research projects. I’ve set myself a fundraising target of £600, and at the time of writing have raised a total of £440. And that’s where you come in – I’d love to smash my target and you could be the person who helps me to do that.

You can donate via JustGiving by clicking on the following link – https://www.justgiving.com/Richard-Black3/ – and any donation, no matter how small, will be very much appreciated. Not least because it will make the blisters, the sore legs and the early starts for training runs/bike rides all the more worthwhile.

And who knows, smashing that target might even encourage me to write more on this here blog! Actually, maybe that’s not an incentive to sponsor me. Yeah, ignore that bit. As you were…

But thanks for reading. And if you decide you can spare a few pounds, thanks for that too. I really appreciate it, and I guess the folks whose lives it saves in future will too.